TexasFile.com sets sights on growth

TexasFile.com started with a handful of Coastal Bend counties almost six years ago. It since has grown to include about 80 counties and has opened to the public online.
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Owners of TexasFile.com, an online land and deed records company, hope to grow their database to include about 100 Texas counties by the end of the year.

The company started with a handful of Coastal Bend counties almost six years ago as a way to provide Corpus Christi-based San Jacinto Title Services with online access to the company's five title plants. Since then, it has grown to include about 80 counties and has opened to the public online.

The move allows big companies as well as individuals to find, review and print land records that have been standardized to make them easy to find, retrieve and read, says co-owner and president Jason B. Smith.

"We are targeting customers outside of the state because we've expanded into Texas' major markets such as Travis, Harris and Dallas counties," Smith said. "When you put that together with cost savings, it makes sense."

TexasFile's fees are 50 cents to view a document and $2 to print a document, regardless of size, compared with the average county fee of a dollar per printed page, he added. Although there are other similar companies online, TexasFile is unique in its service, said E. Brent Bottom, co-owner and CEO.

The company has added foreclosures and oil and gas documents to its database, Bottom said.

"We developed the site and formatted and, from our standpoint, it's easier than most to navigate," Bottom said. "People want quick and fast and we're user-friendly."

Smith said another draw is prompt attention to customer needs.

"When someone sends an e-mail requesting help, it will probably be me who calls them back," Smith said. "With a $6 million company, that e-mail might get lost in all the shuffle. But I've been known to call people back at 8 o'clock on a Sunday."

The next step is to target mortgage and banking companies as well as loading historical data going back to sovereignty. Bottom and Smith are considering venturing into counties outside of Texas.